A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman on Thursday warned the relevant parties against dangerous approaches to Chinese naval vessels to prevent unintended air and maritime incidents.
Mao Ning, the spokeswoman, made the warning at a daily press briefing in Beijing in response to a related query, adding that the activities of the Chinese military always comply with international law and international practice.
According to media reports, a commercial drone recently approached a Chinese naval vessel in the relevant waters.
China warns against dangerous approaches to naval vessels
The United Nations Security Council on Thursday held its first closed-door straw poll voting conducted by its 15 members on the candidates for the next UN secretary-general.
In the non-binding poll, Security Council members are asked in secret ballots whether they "encourage", "discourage" or have "no opinion" on each candidate. The results are not officially released.
A candidate must receive at least nine "encourage" ballots and no "discourage" veto by any of the five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States -- in order to be recommended by the Security Council and appointed by the UN General Assembly. Zenon Mukongo Ngay, the UN permanent representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council for the month of July, said that the next Security Council informal vote will be decided in the coming days and chaired by Denmark which holds the Security Council presidency in August.
"The first round of straw poll has taken place. The candidates will be informed of the results through the respective permanent representatives of nominating member states. The president of the [UN] General Assembly will also be informed that the straw poll has been conducted," Ngay told reporters after the conclusion of the secret vote.
Looking at past cycles, voting will probably run through the summer and finish around late September or early October. The process could drag on even longer if no consensus candidate emerges.
The current UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres took office in January 2017, and was reelected in 2021. His term ends on December 31 this year. According to the UN Charter, the secretary-general serves a five-year term and is eligible for reelection.
All seven candidates were on the straw poll. They are: Michelle Bachelet, former Chilean president and former UN high commissioner for human rights; Maria Fernanda Espinosa, former UN General Assembly president and former foreign minister and defense minister of Ecuador; Rafael Mariano Grossi of Argentina, current director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency; Rebeca Grynspan, former vice president of Costa Rica and current secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development; Olara Otunnu of Uganda, former UN under-secretary-general; Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett, Guyana's permanent representative to the United Nations, and Macky Sall, former president of Senegal.
UN Security Council holds straw poll on secretary-general candidates
